


Synopsis: An Eye for an Eye

by dairesfanficrefuge_archivist



Category: Highlander: The Series
Genre: Meta, Season/Series 02
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2003-12-31
Updated: 2003-12-31
Packaged: 2018-12-18 06:49:35
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11868900
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dairesfanficrefuge_archivist/pseuds/dairesfanficrefuge_archivist
Summary: Note from Daire, the archivist: this story was originally archived atDaire's Fanfic Refuge. Deciding to give the stories a more long-term home, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address onDaire's Fanfic Refuge's collection profile.





	Synopsis: An Eye for an Eye

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Daire, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [Daire's Fanfic Refuge](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Daire%27s_Fanfic_Refuge). Deciding to give the stories a more long-term home, I began importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in August 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [Daire's Fanfic Refuge's collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/dairesfanficrefuge/profile).

An Eye for an Eye

**AN EYE FOR AN EYE**

The first episode after the death of Tessa. 

Both Duncan and Richie mourn her, each in his own way. Duncan has lost 'the most wonderful woman in the world.' Richie misses her warm friendship and maternal influence. Now he must cope with the emotional roller coaster of Immortality. 

In the first flush of seeming invincibility, the newly Immortal Richie rushes to action before putting his brain in gear-just like the old Richie did. After all, if he dies, he'll come back, won't he? Not without a head, he won't, warns MacLeod. And Annie Devlin, his new enemy is not the forgiving kind. 

Duncan's grief and guilt feelings are still very raw. He dumps much of this anger and self-recrimination on a confused Richie. Mac, once a steady guide, becomes an overbearing, unrelenting taskmaster, as he drives Richie to prepare for Immortal combat. Richie sees Mac's bitterness for what it is, and nails Mac on it. 

Ultimately, both realize that however rough Mac's methods are, his goal is Richie's survival. 

**_New Characters:_**

**ANNIE DEVLIN** \- An Immortal Irish rebel in the fight against British rule in the early 1900's. Duncan felt it was not his fight and left her to go it alone. Now, she's a leader in the IRA. 

**KERRY** \- Annie's mortal lover, killed in Ireland in 1919. 

**TOMMY** \- Her mortal husband, present day. 

* * *

After selling the store,   
Winding up his affairs-   
Mac buys Charlie's dojo,   
There's a nice loft upstairs.   
Wanting Charlie to stay-   
To manage the place,   
Mac and Richie move in,   
There is plenty of space, 

The Street, Seacouver 

Richie is hungry,   
He needs a lunch break,   
Mac's depressed, but he'll go-   
For the kid, Richie's sake,   
Immortality hasn't-   
Changed Richie's capacity-   
To consume chili dogs-   
With ferocious voracity. 

'Tess always loved these!'   
Quickly, Rich bites his tongue.   
Mac assures him that thinking-   
Of Tess is not wrong.   
'She was part of our life,   
Don't pretend that she wasn't.'   
'When does it get easier?'   
Mac answers, 'It doesn't.' 

Their route takes them past-   
The British Consulate.   
There's the BUZZ! Rich exclaims-   
'An Immortal! I feel it!'   
They've no way of knowing,   
They're about to preempt-   
A planned IRA-   
Assassination attempt. 

As the British Ambassador-   
Moves toward his car,   
Mac disables one gunman-   
With nifty Hung Gar,   
Rich launches his chili dog-   
(Odd weapon), and then-   
He jumps right in front-   
Of a loaded Mac-10. 

Who's the brain of this group?   
Annie Devlin's the one.   
She aims her Mac-10-   
To ensure the job's done.   
Down with British rule!   
So despised and reviled!   
But Rich grabs her arms,   
And the bullets spray wild. 

Tommy, her husband-   
Is the only one hit.   
His corpse, bullet-riddled-   
And she screams over it.   
' _Teach solas!_ ' in Gaelic,   
She shrieks to her men,   
They take off without her,   
Planning to fight again. 

She leans over Tommy,   
And so does MacLeod.   
His eyes fix on hers,   
But she is not cowed.   
They both are Immortal,   
Paths crossed in the past,   
Then she turns to Richie,   
And her gaze holds him fast. 

'You're a _dead_ man!' to Richie,   
Her expression is smoldering,   
Mac bends down to Tommy,   
And takes off his gold ring,   
He remembers this ring,   
It's familiar because-   
The last man who wore it,   
Also died for the 'Cause.' 

The Loft 

Richie's brazen and cocky,   
Loving his Immortality.   
He stared down the gun barrel-   
Not afraid of fatality.   
Mac: 'If you're killed in public,   
You _can't_ walk away!   
And think of how many-   
Could have been shot today!' 

'One _did_ die,' Mac argues,   
Rich insists, 'He deserved it!'   
'Did you look in his soul?   
Have you really observed it?'   
'Rich-You must learn the Game.'   
Rich agrees to be taught,   
But what Mac has in mind-   
Isn't what Richie thought. 

The Dojo 

With a _Flip!_ And a _Smash!_   
A _Bang!_ And a _Splat!_   
MacLeod's tossing Richie-   
All over the mat!   
The only thing Richie-   
Will learn in this class,   
Is one hundred ways,   
To be dumped on his ass! 

'I've _had_ it!' storms Rich,   
'It's about _Tess,_ not me!   
You weren't the hero-   
You wanted to be.   
You are blaming yourself,   
Sending _us_ out alone,   
So you're beating _me_ up,   
Well, you're now on your own!' 

Mac: 'You haven't yet started,   
You are still much too new,   
You've _got_ to get ready,   
Annie's coming for you.   
'No more! Mac, I'm leaving,   
As for Annie, well she-   
Is sitting in jail,   
So she cannot hurt me' 

Flashback, Ireland, 1919 

As Richie storms out,   
Duncan looks in his hand,   
The ring takes him back-   
To the 'Troubles' in Ireland,   
Annie lifted her glass,   
To 'The Cause,' was her boast,   
'To Happiness,' Mac countered,   
She agreed to that toast. 

Three made the toast,   
Annie, Kerry, and Mac   
A few seconds later,   
They were under attack.   
Kerry was killed-   
By a sniper that day,   
Annie pulled off his ring-   
Before running away. 

Mac had a boat hidden-   
So they could escape,   
But Annie held back-   
On the shore's rocky cape.   
Annie begged Mac to stay-   
To combat Britain's corps,   
'Oh, it's going to be-   
Such a _beautiful_ war!' 

'No war is beautiful,'   
Was Duncan's reply,   
'It will not end in freedom,   
For the victims who die.'   
She: 'Go on alone-   
But I'll stay and fight-   
For The Cause, and for freedom.   
I know that it's right!' 

Duncan rowed away leaving-   
Her alone on the shore.   
Though he grew up a warrior-   
Darius taught him much more,   
The war Annie wants-   
Will turn friend against friend,   
Mac's last words to Annie,   
'This never will end.' 

Present Day, Federal Building 

Annie Devlin's being held-   
For political crimes,   
The questions they ask-   
They repeat many times.   
'Give us something interesting,   
Not the same runaround.'   
So, she leaps out the window,   
Ten floors to the ground! 

The Loft 

Mac sits with some photos,   
Happy memories of Tess,   
Charlie enters, advising-   
'Lay off Rich, hound him less.   
Annie Devlin can't hurt him,'   
Duncan finds this bewildering,   
'Annie jumped from the tenth floor,   
Of the Federal Building.' 

Meanwhile..... 

Annie lies in the morgue,   
And like all 'dead' Immies,   
When her body bag's unzipped-   
She's alive! -Out she shimmies.   
She is off to the bar-   
Where her men quench their thirst,   
'We'll still kill the ambassador,   
But we'll get the kid first.' 

The Dojo 

Rich has come back to Charlie's,   
He is working with weights,   
He and Mac reconcile,   
They both spoke in haste.   
'I've been losing folks lately,   
Didn't want to lose you!'   
'That makes two of us, Mac,   
Tell me what I must do.' 

Mac confirms, Annie's loose-   
And she'll come for his head.   
The cops won't pursue her,   
They think she is dead,   
Rich is willing to train-   
For the day that he'll meet her,   
Mac will teach him the skills,   
That he'll need to defeat her. 

The Woods 

Rich and Mac bring their swords-   
To this sheltered, green glade,   
Mac gives Richie lessons-   
In the art of the blade.   
Rich is a fast learner,   
He soon finds his groove,   
Duncan shows him the counter-   
To Annie's best move. 

Back at the Dojo 

Richie's training in earnest,   
He tries not to lag,   
Charlie coaches his workout-   
As he punches the bag,   
But he still is a kid,   
It's beyond comprehension-   
That removing his head-   
Would be someone's intention. 

Time to check on his bike,   
He has noticed the hour,   
And he has a friend waiting,   
Charlie says, 'Take a shower.'   
'Your friend will be grateful,'   
But Rich does not notice,   
That the man right behind him,   
Is Annie's accomplice. 

The Street then Loft/Warehouse 

Richie picks up his bike,   
Annie's man cuts him off-   
Forcing Rich to detour-   
To a second floor loft.   
Annie, hidden in shadow-   
Waits to even the score,   
Along with her Buzz-   
Comes a hard two-by-four! 

He is decked on the floor,   
Rich just HAS to remind her,   
'You forget your sword?'   
But it's whipped from behind her.   
'Oh, I HAD to ask!'   
She approaches, alert,   
'Oh, you're gonna _die!_   
But first you will _hurt!_ ' 

She makes good the threat,   
Kicks him into submission,   
As she readies her sword-   
He dives for the ignition,   
Just in time, the bike fires!   
Oh, that engine sounds sweet!   
Rich explodes through the window,   
Airborne to the street. 

Back at the Dojo/Loft 

Rich limps through the door-   
Like he stepped on a mine.   
Charlie's very concerned,   
Mac knows he'll be fine.   
Mac: 'She missed you once,   
It won't happen again,   
I have to get to her,   
Where did she send her men?' 

' _Teach solas,_ ' she said,   
Richie: 'What does it mean?'   
Mac: 'It's Gaelic for 'lighthouse.''   
Mac will now intervene.   
He goes to the lighthouse,   
When his Buzz makes him known-   
Annie tells her men, 'Go!'   
She will face Mac alone. 

The Lighthouse 

'Are we enemies, then?'   
'Not by my choice,' says he,   
'And it would be a shame-   
To waste good Irish whiskey,'   
The toast that he offers,   
'To Happiness' revives-   
Memories of Ireland,   
When they led different lives 

She will drink to 'The Cause,'   
But MacLeod won't agree,   
So, they settle on 'Happiness,'   
Whiskey shared, by the sea.   
It's a hundred years old-   
And it mellows their mood,   
'MacLeod, getting me drunk,   
Won't do you much good.' 

'I'm still going to kill Richie,'   
(Between swigs of the brew)   
'It won't bring Tommy back...   
There is nothing we do-   
That can bring someone back-   
Once they're dead,' mumbles Duncan.   
They imbibe, and they grieve,   
Till they both are quite drunken. 

'You've lost someone, too?'   
Mac: 'We've something to share.   
But you sent those boys-   
To their deaths well aware-   
Of what you were doing!'   
Annie draws her sword, 'Fight!'   
He looks at her sadly,   
'No.. No...not tonight.' 

'Mac, I feel dead-   
Inside me, do _you?_ '   
Duncan also needs solace,   
For the pain, he's been through.   
Maybe for a moment-   
Mac and Annie can find-   
By embracing each other...   
Some warmth, peace of mind. 

The Next Day-The Lighthouse 

'Last night _never happened!_ '   
Mac: 'To me, it seemed real.'   
'It's a blood debt, MacLeod,   
Richie dies, that's the deal!'   
'You won't get to Richie-   
Without going through me!'   
'MacLeod, it was really-   
A grand night,' says she. 

The Dojo 

Rich: 'You _fought!_ ' 'Not exactly-   
She's _coming_ for you.   
Get out of the city,   
That's all you can do.'   
'Mac, I've worked my BUTT off,   
Now I should turn tail?'   
'Rich, I cannot kill her-   
And you may not prevail.' 

Rich agrees to leave town,   
But our boy is perverse,   
He agrees to one thing-   
Then does the reverse.   
Mac's worst fears are realized-   
When he looks at the wall,   
Where once hung a sword.   
Now there's nothing at all! 

The Lighthouse 

He is challenging Annie,   
With guts and with grit,   
Though new to the game,   
He refuses to quit.   
Annie's very impressed,   
'You're more skilled than I thought.'   
Rich quickly disarms her,   
With the move, that Mac taught. 

MacLeod has been watching,   
But not interfering,   
Now Annie's defenseless,   
But fearless, appearing.   
' _Do_ it! _I_ would!'   
She is ready to die,   
But as Rich lifts his sword-   
He screams to the sky! 

' _NO-O-O-o-o-o!!!_ '   
He cannot take her head!   
He slumps away, shaken-   
Sits in silence, instead.   
'You're a fool! I'll come for you!'   
'No, you _won't,_ ' Mac is stern,   
'Richie took Tommy's life,   
But gave _yours,_ in return.' 

'Annie, this has to end,'   
Mac gives back her ring,   
Enfolds her to him,   
Together, they cling.   
What lesson for Richie?   
As he watches, apart-   
In spite of the Game,   
Don't forget, you've a heart. 

The Loft 

Rich: 'I just couldn't do it,   
I am not meant to be-   
The kind who will kill-   
For my Immortality.'   
Mac assures him that he-   
Should not feel it strange.   
Although he'll live longer,   
What's inside will not change. 

Mac presents Rich a gift,   
A sword of his own,   
A magnificent weapon.   
How much Rich has grown!   
'Live with it, care for it,   
It may be your lone friend.'   
'Cause both know there'll be-   
Only ONE in the end! 

Peace, Emit   
© 2001-2003 

_Teach solas_ is roughly pronounced 'chock soh-lahs'. 

**_Under the Kilt_ from Highlander: The Official Site: **

Ken Gord, Producer   
'This was interesting because we got shut down for the day. And we got shut down only one or two times in the entire five years I was there. We were shooting the scene down by the lighthouse and about lunchtime I got a call from the set that some kind of flare had washed up on shore. They weren't sure if it was a bomb or something, so they had to call the Canadian Army and evacuate the set. And it took the Army a couple of hours to get there. And it ended up being a flare from a ship, but it cost us the day. I think it was our first and only insurance claim.' 

~ The Zone   
  
---


End file.
